The Empire of the Sun and Moon
by Asta Neptune
Summary: The court of Konoha is the serene and beautiful seat of power in the Empire of the Sun and Moon. Sheltered heiress Hinata, daughter of the Hyuga house goes there in order to marry the Emperor of the Sun, Namikaze Naruto. Everything is not as it seems, for she must gain the approval of the Emperor of the Moon, Sasuke, Naruto's husband. SasuNaru, harem. OC in later chapters.


**A/N: This is a different type of Naruto AU. I don't have any clear plot for this particular tale, so if you like and you have suggestions, I'd love to hear about it in a review. I blame this on watching **_**Isabel**_**, **_**Empress Ki**_**, and **_**The Tudors**_** simultaneously. It is SasuNaru, but with Sasuke and Naruto maintaining separate harems for the goal of having children. I'll be frank, at some points, chapters will be one bit catfight, or a pile of steaminess or even a battle. **

_**Chapter I: Contracts.**_

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She had always known that this would be her fate.

All of the training, in the mundane form of music lessons from stuck up, snooty men, and an old crone harping on her to 'hold her fan like this', hadn't been for absolutely nothing. She had been instructed in the correct way to pour tea and the correct way to bow and receive guests and all sorts of other tasks. Day after day of being paraded in lavish silk kimonos before court emissaries, putting on quiet performances for visiting guests had been part of a carefully laid plan.

She was a complete and total success.

At least, her father seemed to see it that way.

Hinata, Heiress to the Hyuga House and Countess of the Flower Province was a wealthy and powerful match on the political scale.

She was intelligent, and extraordinarily beautiful, but shy, withdrawn, and quite frankly, unfit to rule on her own. At least, that's what all the elders said. What, with her soft voice, trembling hands and blushing face, who would respect her as a superior, as one capable of making and keeping laws? Although she knew her father was hesitant to name another heir, as while he was not entirely satisfied with how she came out, he loved her dearly and wanted nothing but the best for her.

In the end, her cousin Neji had been chosen to take her place. A choice she was glad for, Neji-nii-san was a genius, no a prodigy, and was more than capable of ruling the Flower Province with as much dignity, skill and even love as her own father did.

This changed her fate greatly, however.

This had resulted in her being placed on the marriage market of the Elemental Lands. Many had vied for her hand, but the richest and most anticipated bid had come from the Empire. They all were under the Empire of the Sun and Moon, recently joined together, but each province ruler, whether it be a Duke, Count or even a Marquis, had considerable power in their own realm. But at the end of the day, it was the Emperors that they answered to.

Hinata plucked away at her shamisen, as her sister sat by and read diligently to her. It had been nearly a week since the marriage contract had been sent away to the capital city, and there was anxiousness in the court about what the responses would be. Since then, the Land of Flowers had been in the middle of spring, flower petals softly floating down from the blossoming cherry trees.

"Hinata-sama." A young maid stood by the door, "Your father wishes to see you." Hinata excitedly got up from her position on the ground, and followed the maid to her father's study. When she entered, her gaze fell to his desk. Upon it, scrolls and brushes her neatly arrange, but off to the corner, was an opened letter. At the very tip was a seal, a seal with a scarlet spiral upon it—the seal of the Dowager Empress of the Sun Empire, Kushina. A rush of breath was Hinata's response to this, and she looked up at her father.

He wasn't smiling, but there was a pleased expression on his visage.

"My dear daughter. You will be the wife of the Emperor of the Sun." Hinata allowed a bit of excitement to cross her face, but she remembered her manners and bowed lowly. She was grateful for her long, dark blue hair hiding the smile and blush on her face. It wouldn't do well to disappoint her father so soon. The future Queen would celebrate when she was safe behind the tatami doors.

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Namikaze Kushina was a woman of great pragmatism.

She had adored her husband, deeply loved her son, and was devoted to her kingdom. To put it simply, she was a lady capable of great love.

On the flip-side, she was also known to be cruel. She was a kitsune, and when wronged, the fox demons could be vicious and unforgiving. After the unexpected death of her husband, she'd cultivated their son to be firm, but aware, strong, but caring. It had been a task, a daunting one, seeing as the politicians at court had been battling for control of the young Emperor, and Kushina did more than show her claws in order to put off the men who would use him for nefarious purposes.

A mere year after the death of Minato, the Emperor of the Moon, and the husband of Kushina's dear friend, Mikoto was killed on the battlefield. The woman's sole consolation was that her husband had gone out in a blaze of glory.

Itachi had abdicated some years before, leaving the second son, Sasuke, as the Prince, now the Emperor of the Moon. As per the agreements of their ancestors, the two came together for friendly meetings, as war between such superpowers could be devastating. However, Kushina forgot that everything didn't go according to plan.

Sasuke and Naruto, slowly, but surely, fell in love, and the last thing she wanted was for war to implode the kingdoms. That's when Mikoto proposed the idea of wives, a harem if you would. The Imperial family was small, children had a low mortality rate due to inbreeding in the past, and new blood would surely make things better.

Kushina had been hesitant, but the thought of the kingdoms merging into one impenetrable empire was too good to pass up. And so the Kingdom of the Sun and the Kingdom of the Moon became the Empire of the Sun and Moon. She did admit, her son looked wonderful with his pale, handsome counterpart.

Naruto was like the sun, with his bright blue eyes that seemed to reflect the ocean and sky, his golden locks that stuck up in every conceivable direction, and tanned skin. He was of a good size for a male, just a bit shorter than the average, and while lightly muscled, could be considered effeminate in his appearance. He had a tail, and blonde ears that wiggled when excited.

Sasuke personified the moon, ebony eyes that had endless depths, inky black hair, and alabaster skin. He was larger than Naruto, cut like a statue, and his small wolf ears and tail didn't mean that he was weaker than other men. In fact, Sasuke had easily laid waste to many men before taking the throne of the Moon.

It was a rainy afternoon that found her repairing her son's yukata. With a faint smile lighting her features, she noted that he always tore the supposedly sturdy material. For years, her ladies had protested that sewing was not an Empress' duty, but growing up in an impoverished albeit well-connected noble family had taught her hard work was vital to a good life.

"Lady Kushina." The red-haired dowager raised her head and resisted the urge to sigh. While she thought Sakura was a good girl, if a bit stuck-up, that tone meant she'd been quarrelling with Karin again. The pinkette sat across from her, bowed, and then straightened up.

"Sakura-chan." Kushina gave a tiny little smile, "What issue do you have with Karin now?" Sakura's face turned pink under her make-up,

"She continues to intrude on my maids."

"Such is the life of living as a member of the Imperial family." Sakura was about to speak, but held her tongue, as Kushina continued, "Karin is…difficult, but she is kin to me."

"Yes, but she is mannerless…and dresses as if she were a common prostitute!" Well, that much was true. The necklines were too low, the colors far too bright for the dignified nature of the court. But there was not much that dear Mikoto could have done. Kushina could see the girl's clenched fists wrinkling the material of her silk kimono, "It is disgraceful and tasteless!"

"Her family is one of the Uchiha House's staunchest supporters. The marriage was inevitable, Sakura, you know that." The red-head laughed, "Besides, dear girl, she is gone for 7 months out of the year." This seemed to placate the young woman, who gave a sigh of resignation. Kushina's eyes slid over to observe Sakura. She'd been a childhood companion of Naruto, in fact there had been a time Naruto maintained a puppyish love for the girl, but that since had faded away.

Intelligent, pretty enough, but her forehead and slender frame caused her to be considered somewhat plain. She was a strong stickler for tradition and would be paranoid about ruining tiny details. At least she was a good girl. The girl stood, bowed and left the room, and Kushina laughed again at the silliness of her daughters-in-law.

Sakura on the other hand had made a beeline for the courtyard, where Ino would no doubt would be tending to the garden.

"Forehead." The girl didn't even look up from the flower beds, but continued talking, "News of your latest spat with Karin has already gotten all the way down to the servant's quarters." Sakura had her outer robes removed by a maid, and kneeled next to her best friend, pulling out weeds,

"I can't stand her." Ino gave a snort, no one really liked her. On Sasuke's end, there was Sakura and Karin. Naruto had yet to take a wife, something that they could tell was unnerving the elderly councilmen. Ino was a potential wife. Her trial period was up in a month, but it was clear her presence contributed to the palace. Pale blue eyes and flaxen blonde hair made her desirable, not to mention her gardening skills had revitalized the garden of the long-gone Empress Mito.

Then there were concubines littered around the palace, but most of them were tolerable. "Just because she has already given Sasuke-sama a child." Ino sighed, said child, Fumiko, was a girl, but it was a child. Sakura rested her hands on her lap, staining the white kimono with mud. She sniffled softly, "Fumiko is so precious…how could she come from such a bitch?" The blonde chuckled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders,

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan. Everything will be fine, I promise."

"Of course…I can only hope and pray that you're right, Ino…" After the pinkette's tears were dried and they moved from the ground to the porch, "Naruto is getting another wife, correct?" Ino nodded,

"A Hyuga." Sakura frowned,

"The only Hyuga I know of that's of age to marry is an heiress. That'd be impossible, she's not allowed to leave the Empire." Ino beckoned the girl closer,

"Well…I know you doubt my sources, **but**…" Sakura rolled her eyes at the mention of Ino's 'sources', but listened on, "Rumor is that her cousin was made heir." The pinkette was stunned. The cousin was a member of the Hyuga branch house. The move was unprecedented in history. Before the conversation could go further, the ringing of bells alerted the girls to the fact that their individual husbands had returned from their latest diplomatic trip.

It was no large reception, but it was always nice to welcome both men back from such a long trip. It was to their shock that Naruto was grim and unsmiling. Usually he'd be the first one to chatter as he jumped off of his horse, fox tail swaying and mouth going a mile a minute.

Sasuke was always stone-faced, but there was a wrinkle on his brow that denoted anger this time around. Ino held back as Sakura approached both men, bowed, and then asked, as the blond dismounted,

"I'm happy to see you both back, but…what's wrong? Did the Land of Grass give you trouble?" Sasuke snorted, as Naruto seethed,

"Worse than trouble, Sakura-chan." He handed his horse's reins off to a waiting servant boy. "Rebels." Sakura bit her lip, rebels lead to mutinies, mutinies led to skirmishes and skirmishes were the gateway to war. Something that even the nobles wished to avoid. Sasuke put an arm around Sakura and pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead. An act of deep friendship, but nothing having to do with filial love. The blonde on the other hand, raged on,

"And then the Baron has the **nerve **to insult Sasuke and I…" Naruto continued on his little tirade, Sasuke smiling upon observing his spouse. Sakura had to admit, even when he was upset, the Emperor of the Sun was pretty cute. The clack of wooden shoes could be heard as Kushina descended the steps and gave both men a hug.

"How did it go?" Sasuke responded,

"Terribly. I want to send a legion to the Grass Country." Kushina frowned, as Sasuke went on, as they entered the palace, "The Baron was hostile, even when we were having dinner. Not to mention the fields looked ravaged. Clearly there is a power struggle going on. Possibly between the Baron and his people themselves." Kushina sighed deeply,

"Minato never trusted Orochimaru." Naruto spoke up,

"I can send Ero-Sen…" At the glare on his mother's delicate face, he sighed, "Jiraya-ji-san a letter to keep an eye on the old snake. The Valley of Toads is right next to the Grass Country, not to mention bigger. The old man may be a perv, but no one can say that he's incompetent." The red-head nodded in approval, then clapped her hands together,

"I am pleased to say, Naru-chan, that I have found a suitable wife for you." Naruto blinked at his mother, looked back at Sasuke, then looked at his mother again,

"I trust your judgment, kaa-chan, but Sasuke has to see her first…that was the agreement, wasn't it?" Sasuke looked distinctly uncomfortable, while he understood wives were necessary it still made him upset. It was adorable. Kushina hid a smile as she responded,

"Of course, my little fox. I actually think you'll like her. Now, we should talk more inside…" Sakura and Ino watched them go, seeing Sasuke pause at the top of the steps to pick up Fumiko, who giggled at a raspberry blown at her from Naruto. Sakura watched silently, jealousy rearing up in her chest. Squashing down the foul emotion towards an innocent child, she followed them up the steps, wondering faintly about this new wife.

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Review? Yes? No? Please?


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